The passing of an Heirloom
by Cheeky-eyes
Summary: We all know that Fred and George gave the map to Harry, but for what reasons? What was their POV? A fic about how the map came to be Harry's.


Hello, this is my first Harry Potter fan fic so I hope you enjoy it!! This is dedicated to my wonderful friend and beta, Keshia! She writes Harry Potter fanfiction on another site so I decided to write one in a fandom she knew as all my fics so far have been Yu-Gi-Oh ones. So Keshia, I hope you enjoy it!! Everyone, yeah I hope you like it too.

Oh yeah and it goes without saying I don't own Harry Potter, J.K Rowling does; and the scene with Fred and George giving Harry the map are direct quotes from the book.

And without further ado, lets get on with the fic.

**The passing of an heirloom.**

**xxx**

The corridor was still and quiet. Two fifth years silently made their way out of a secret passage and up to their common room, loaded with food and drink from Hogsmeade.

"You know what Fred, I really don't think we need this anymore!" One of the boys casually mentions to his identical counterpart while gesturing at an old bit of parchment.

"What makes you say that?" Fred asks his twin with more then mild curiosity.

"Well, I've been thinking…" George starts.

" Now there's your problem," Fred interrupts, muttering under his breath.

"Anyway," George continues with a glare. "I've been thinking that after all the sneaking around, adventures and what not that our little bro, Harry and Hermoine have had in the time they've been here," he pauses to take a breath. "I just think that we should give Harry the map."

"Harry? And what brought this on?" Fred exclaims genially surprised.

"Well, Harry is the one who pretty much faces all the threats, so why shouldn't he have it? Besides, without the map it gives us challenges and Harry ease," George explains with a grin.

" A challenge eh. Well I'm up for it! But," Fred pauses. " It will be sad to see the map go. It does represent a proud moment for us."

" Yes, our 'first' spot of trouble at Hogwarts. But never the less, it's going to a good course," George replies with a sigh.   
" But still, I'm not sure if we should. Give it to Harry I mean. It does show us the clear corridors. And…" Fred says, unsure if his brother's suggestion is sane.

"And that's where the challenge comes in. Any old student can walk around at night, or into secret tunnels if they _know _no one is around. But only a real master can accomplish it without the aid of clear knowledge. And I know you feel it's a good keepsake, but think about it. We really don't need it anymore!" George cuts in, arguing back, almost sounding as if he was trying to convince himself.

"Ok, yes, there is that. But what would Harry do with it?" Fred asks. George thinks for a while, staring at his twin in the meanwhile.

"Well, for one he could use it to get into Hogsmeade," George starts.

"And we could just _tell _him that," Fred points out.

"Yes, but he can also use it while sneaking 'round the school doing Gods knows what! And Fred, think about it, Harry will have to face more then we ever will in our lives. Hell, he already has! What if he needs to do it again and he gets caught before he gets a chance to help and it's our fault because we didn't give him the map! And besides, we really don't need it anymore! We know it off by heart and…" George argues until Fred interrupts.

"Ok, ok. We'll give Harry the map tomorrow before we go to Hogsmeade. The sooner the better, before I change my mind."

"And mine," his twin echo's.

**xxx**

"Where is he? I thought you said you saw him go down," Fred accused as they stood waiting in the third floor corridor behind the statue of the one eyed humpback witch.

"I did, he should be coming down soon," George replies, staring down the corridor. After a couple more minutes of waiting they hear the sound of slow sad footsteps coming towards them. The twins didn't say anything until Harry was just about to pass them.

"Psst- Harry," George said as they jumped out to greet Harry.

"What are you doing? Why aren't you in Hogsmeade?" Harry asked curiously.

"We've come to give you a little festive cheer before we go," said Fred, getting into it, and gave Harry a mysterious wink. "Come in here …" He gestured to an empty classroom to their left. They all walked into it, George turned around and beamed at Harry.

"Early Christmas present for you Harry," he said. Fred pulls the map out of his cloak and places it on the desk, with a tiny bit of reluctance and sadness. Only George notices Harry was too busy trying to figure out what was wrong with the map.

"What is it?" He asks, suspicion clearly penetrating his voice.

"This, Harry, is the secret of our success," George says as he pats the parchment fondly.

"It's a wrench giving it to you, but we decided last night that your needs are greater then ours," Fred says with only a hint of sadness. After the conversation last night he realised that Harry truly did need it more then they did.

"Anyway we know it off by heart," George cuts in. "We bequeath it to you. We don't really need it anymore!"

"And what do I need with an old bit of parchment?" Harry asks, still suspicious.

"A bit of old parchment!" said Fred says, closing his eyes with a grimace as though Harry had mortally offended him. " Explain George."

"Well … when we were in our first year, Harry – young, carefree and innocent –"

Harry snorted. He doubted Fred and George had ever been innocent.

" – Well, more innocent then we are now – we got into a spot of trouble with Filch."

"We let a Dungbomb in the corridor and it upset him for some reason –"

"So he hauled us off to his office and started threatening us with the usual –"

" – detention - "

" – disembowelment –"

" – and we couldn't help noticing a drawer in one of his filling cabinets marked _Confiscated and Highly Dangerous._"

"Don't tell me –" Harry says with a grin.

"Well what would have you done?" Fred innocently asks. "George caused a diversion by dropping another Dungbomb, I whipped the draw open and grabbed – _this_."

"Its not as bad as it sounds you know," said George. "We don't reckon Filch ever found out how to work it. He probably suspected what it was though, or he wouldn't have confiscated it."

"And do you know how to work it?"

"Oh yes," said Fred smirking. He remembered how they figured that out as though it was only yesterday.

**xxx**

_He and George had escaped from the clutches of Filch with only a detention. When they got back to the common room Fred pulled the parchment out of his robe and the twins examined it._

"_So what do you think it does?" Georges asked his twin as he poked the parchment._

"_I dunno, but Filch wouldn't have had it if it wasn't dangerous," Fred replies._

"_Good point."_

_Fred and George examined it long into the night with no luck what so ever. By 2 am their idea's were getting wilder and wilder._

"_Oh, maybe it's an insult thinker-upper-a," Fred laughs as the map insults them for the twentieth time that night. _

"_No, maybe it tells you the opposite of what your thinking. Oh my, it's a mind reader!" George laughs back with his twin._

"_Or maybe it wants you to talk to it. Hello parchmenty, can you tell us your deepest secrets?" Fred mockingly asks._

"_Or maybe you must swear allegiance to it. Now what would ours be dear brother?" George asks. Fred picks up his wand and puts one hand on his heart and says,_

"_How 'bout, I solemnly swear I'm up to no good?" Fred answers as he points his wand on the parchment. George stars laughing again, until he notices lines and dots appear on the parchment. _

"_Fred," his voice comes out just above a whisper as a map presents it self. "I think you've got it!"_

"_My God, it's a map! And **look, **it shows where everyone in the castle is! George, do you know what this means?" Fred asks excitedly._

"_Yeah, with this we'll never get caught again!" George answers just as excited. They both bend down to examine the map more closely._

"_Look Fred! Some of these passage ways lead out of the school!" George says as he points at a few of them._

"_Whoa. … Do you think Filch knows about this?" Fred asks._

"_No, do you really think he'll utter the words, 'I solemnly swear I'm up to no good?'" George asks. _

"_Good point," Fred laughs. " And he probably saw the insults, got frustrated, and left it at that."_

"_So, does it stay like this now that we've activated it?" George asks._

"_Nah, there must be another phrase or something that deactivated it. But what I wonder?" Fred answers._

"_Well, to activate you say 'I solemnly swear I'm up to no good.' So maybe to deactivate it it's the opposite or something. Like I'm done, … or mischief managed," George ponders as the map wiped itself clear._

"_I think it is Mischief managed," Fred says triumphantly._

**xxx**

"This little beauty's taught us more then all the teachers in this school." Fred finishes telling Harry about the map.

"You're winding me up," said Harry.

"Oh are we?" George says with a sly hint in his voice. He took out his wand, touched the parchment lightly and uttered the 'password.' At once the map activated. Harry stared at it in wonder

"As you can see, many of these passages are secret and not many students or teachers know of them. A couple even lead right into Hogsmeade," said Fred, aware that Harry only heard the end of that sentence. "There are seven in all. Now, Filch knows of these four –" he pointed them out with his finger. "- But we're sure we're the only ones who know about _these_. Don't bother with the one behind the mirror on the fourth floor, we used it until last winter, but it caved in. And we don't reckon anyone's used this one, it's directly below the Whomping Willow. But this one here leads right into the cellar of Honeydukes. We've used it loads of times and as you can see the entrance is right outside this room."

"Money, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs," sighed George, patting the map for the last time. He too was going to miss it! "We owe them so much."

"Noble men working tirelessly to help a new generation of law breakers," Fred says solemnly.

"Right, but don't forget to wipe it clear when your done-" George says.

" - or anyone can read it," Fred adds warningly.

"Just tap it once with your wand and say, 'Mischief Managed,' and it'll go blank," George finishes.

"Now young Harry," Fred said with an uncanny impersonation of Percy, "mind you behave yourself."

"And see you in Honeydukes," adds George with a wink. After they left Harry to himself, with smirks on their faces, Fred turns to George.

"You know what, I think we did the right thing!"

"Yes, helping a new generation of law breakers," George says, still smirking.


End file.
